It’s the most important game of the year for UEFA: the Champions League final on May 28th. The duel for the title in the premier class is to take place in St. Petersburg. In view of the recognition of the self-proclaimed People’s Republics of Luhansk and Donetsk by Russia and the invasion of Russian troops, various politicians are now demanding that UEFA postpone the final.
Güntzler (CDU) calls for “political sports sanctions”
“The current developments in eastern Ukraine are a clear violation of international law by Russia, which we should counteract with sport-political sanctions,” writes Fritz Güntzler, CDU chairman in the Bundestag sports committee, when asked by Deutschlandfunk. The federal government must now seek talks with UEFA and work towards relocating the venue.
But even in the governing parties there is little sympathy for holding the final in Vladimir Putin’s birthplace of all places. It is perfidious to celebrate a sporting celebration with representatives of the Russian regime while military action is taking place in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions, according to Green sports politician Philipp Krämer.
The sports policy spokesman for the FDP, Philipp Hartewig, also sees it this way: “Personally, I can’t imagine it because the political effect that every major sporting event has on the outside would be fatal, especially in the direction of Ukraine.”
Sports Committee Chairman: “Too early to derive sports-political consequences”
But there are mixed signals from the SPD. Sports policy spokeswoman Sabine Poschmann writes to Deutschlandfunk that she thinks holding the final in Russia is unthinkable.
The chairman of the sports committee, Frank Ullrich, also from the SPD, informed the Reuters news agency that it was much too early to derive sports-political consequences due to the dynamic situation. “As quickly as the Russian troops marched into Ukraine, they can be withdrawn just as quickly,” says the former biathlete.
The Left Party and AfD are also against a transfer. Instead of continuing to turn the spiral of escalation, more diplomacy is now needed on many levels, says sports politician Andre Hahn. Sport can build bridges for this. AfD politician Jörn König believes that sport and politics should remain separate. He is also against a transfer.
UEFA: “Decision will be made – if necessary”
UEFA itself states that it is monitoring developments – if necessary, the association would make a decision in due course. The swimming association FINA and the ski association FIS also want to do the same. The FIS is already planning several World Cups in Russia in March, and the FINA has chosen Kazan to host the short course World Championships at the end of the year.
The international pressure is definitely increasing. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced in the House of Commons that it was inconceivable that major international football matches could take place in Russia after the invasion of a sovereign state.
And MEPs in the EU Parliament are also calling on UEFA to act – and not just with a view to the Champions League final. Austrian MEP Hannes Heide demands that UEFA should also end its cooperation with the main sponsor Gazprom.
UEFA has its responsibilities to take care of and if you are serious about what the purpose of sport is and of sporting events then you simply cannot argue that this event should take place in St. Petersburg and you also cannot argue that that one of the large, state-owned Russian companies is still the sponsor of this sports series.
Polish politician calls on UEFA to end cooperation with Gazprom
Green politician Krämer demands that the DFB put the issue on the agenda soon. The “planned football festival in Germany in the summer of 2024” would be in “blatant contradiction” to an advertisement by Gazprom should Russia find itself in a military conflict. “The political independence of the EM would be endangered,” says Krämer.
Gazprom has also been sponsoring Schalke 04 for 15 years, and the second division team is economically dependent on the high amounts. Like UEFA, the club wants to monitor the situation – and is emphatically appealing for peace.
Sport as a means of increasing power
The restrained reactions show how great the influence of Gazprom is in individual associations and clubs. Russia has been strengthening this commitment for many years.
On the one hand, Russia and Gazprom use the sponsorship for classic image cultivation. At Schalke, for example, the slogan “Secure Energy for Europe” flickered across the gang to advertise the controversial Nord Stream 2 Baltic Sea pipeline.
Whether as the main sponsor of Schalke 04 or as a premium partner of the Champions League: the Russian natural gas giant Gazprom is present in top European football. It may be about positive PR for the company, but by getting involved in football, Gazprom is also buying access to valuable networks.
However, the commitment to sport has also been a door opener for Russia. “It’s like fast-track diplomacy,” said sports economist Simon Chadwick in May 2021 on DLF.
Because if Gazprom wants to talk to the UK energy secretary, it would normally have to follow diplomatic protocols and wait weeks, months or even years before speaking. But when you sponsor the Champions League, you just send him a couple of tickets to a game and say, ‘Hey, come to the game.’ And of course he will say yes.
Russia’s influence doesn’t just extend to football
Such contacts can help to influence possible decisions in the Russian interest or to gain information. At FC Schalke 04, a former Stasi employee sits on the supervisory board on a Gazprom ticket, and the CEO of Gazprom Neft sits on the UEFA Executive Committee. Committees that open up contacts to people who are interesting for Moscow.
The congress of the International Canoe Federation ICF is about the successor to President José Perurena. Candidates are the German Thomas Konietzko and Evgenii Arkhipov. The Russian is one of many top officials who are now being backed by the political leadership in a bid for greater influence in the international sporting world.
The attempt to gain influence through sport is not limited to football. Russia has also expanded its influence in other sports in recent years. In the amateur boxing association IBA, for example, Umar Kremlev was elected as the new president. During the election campaign, he promised to restructure the heavily indebted association. Shortly after his election, he presented a new main sponsor: Gazprom.